Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1887-07-16


To be on friendly terms with ones
wife's relatives, says a writer in the
Chicago Herald. should be the modest
aim of every married man. I would
extend this friendly sentiment even to
mothers-in-law, than whom no class o.
human beings, male or female. has beer
more or less unjustly maligned.
speak not of the puny darts OF the hu-
mOrous paragrapher, for he Is to be for
given much In that he suffers much, but
of that unWhOlesome sentiment pervad-
ing all classes which has invested the
mOther-in-law with the form and sem
blance of a social dragon, to be hated,
despised, combated,- driven out, but
never loved. There is a great deal to
be said on her side. a mother, look
you, rears her daughter with what ez-
penditure Of care, money, heartburn
ing, anxiety she can. She sees the
young thing ripen into the fullness Of
| beauty, and Is no mother at all if, in
her eyes at least, the beauty is not more
! beautiful than any other in the world.
| Thus, DOlly's complexion may not be
/ good, but then she was sick so long
| and, besides, look at those beautiful
| eyes and that shape. Were there ever
such shape and eyes? And Polly.
| her gait, and her eyes must be owned
/ to be watery; but que UOlLtez UOlls =?
/ Did she not ruin her dear eyes in the
pursuit of learning and the embel-
/ lishment of that brilliant mind? Who
/ so bright as my Polly? As for Molly,
| who, it is owned, has neither shape,
! eyes, nor mind-dO not the roses bloom
| In her cheeks? Her cOmplexiOn-is it
| not the pink of beauty? So, if there
/ be a fourth sister, and she is blind,
| hating, pimply, crooked, and a fool. Is
| her mother, fOrsOOth, Of all mothers on
/ earth, to point out these defects? No,
/ indeed, mothers are not so constituted.
! Very we'll, then; Molly or Polly
/ grows to more or less graceful maturity,
/ her mothers darling and her fathers
/ pride, when 10 there crosses her path
/ a shock-headed youth, or a smooth
headed youth: a tall youth or a short,
a fat, or O thin and-v'la! Polly or
/ Molly is at his feet Cfigurativeiy, OF
| cOurse.) Thereafter, madam, these
| young ladies, your daughters, are no
longer yours, but the bOunden slaves OF
that young fellow there, who may live
to be hanged for all you know. You
wish he might, don't you, as you reflect
that your Obedient daughter, whom you
4Oh0 anu tLEL4545 MAgLl- .NOA 44LAoGt
through the fever, whose thoughts were
your thoughts and whose heart was
yours till that gawky Apollo appeared
upon the scene, and with a nod of his
head conjured your child away. AL
the loyalty and obedience of years gone
for pair of thin shanks and a prOmi.
nent nose, or some other valuable con-
sideration. BY heaven! if ever a
daughter of mine grows to that age
when she becomes the target for such
tricks as these, and if a lantern-iawed
male imbecile comes to draw her away
I VOW by all the gods Of paternity that
III do what? Take him by the
hand, I suppose, and say "God bless,
you, my childrenl" That is what &
certain old gentleman said to me on 6
similar occasion some years ago, ano
that is what no end Of fathers have said
and viii continue to say, I suppose
since the earth must be peopled anG
sinners bred to the end of time. But
none the less, there is always this plea
for the father-in-law, and if so, why
not also for the mOther-in-law-
though they may bargain and intrigue
to see their daughters settled in the
world, yet in the act Of settlement
there is involved a pang of loss which
must be forever remembered by al
honest son-in-laW.